1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a waste treatment furnace for treating various types of waste.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A conventional waste treatment furnace is constituted generally of a furnace body having a substantially closed treatment cavity into which waste to be treated or burned is received, and a burner mounted on one end of the furnace body for burning up the waste. As will be easily understood, the waste as burned is recovered as burnt residues or ashes.
It has been discovered by the inventor of the present invention that the waste as burned (ashes produced from burning of the waste) is melted when it is heated to high temperatures greater than about 1350.degree. C. The molten residue can be solidified by cooling and recovered as solid residue. As will be apparent, the solid material thus formed can be more effectively and easily reused than the ashes. Additionally, it has been discovered that dioxin produced during burning operation of the waste may be decomposed when the burning operation is conducted at such high temperatures.
However, in the conventional waste treatment furnace, flame of the burner is locally directed to the waste to be treated, which causes a local rise in temperature of the waste. In other words, the treatment cavity is locally heated. Thus, the waste is never uniformly heated to the high temperatures greater than about 1350.degree. C. As a result, the waste as burned is recovered only as the ashes since it cannot be melted to the molten residue.